1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of commerce and more particularly, to a technique of automated compatibility checking for hardware and/or software purchases at the time of purchase.
2. Description of the Related Art
Many different hardware and software platforms exist, each having specific compatibility requirements. In many instances, individuals purchase hardware and/or software that are incompatible with an existing system for which the purchased hardware/software is intended. Requirements of new hardware and software are becoming more selective forcing consumers to be intimately aware of their systems, which is not always the case. Even the most knowledgeable of consumers can be unhappily surprised by non-advertised system/platform specific requirements. For example, many hardware devices and/or software applications that operate perfectly under the WINDOWS XP 32-bit platform are inoperable under the WINDOWS XP 64-bit platform, due mainly to a scarcity of platform specific 64-bit drivers. By comparison there are a wealth of 32-bit drivers which cannot be used for the 64-bit platform.
Many times, consumers purchase items only to discover later that these items do not operate with their existing system. Having purchased an item that is not compatible with their system, the consumer will attempt to return the item to the retailer which requires the consumer to go through the retailer's item return procedures. Some retailers do not permit software/hardware computing components to be returned at all. Other retailers charge a significant restocking fee (e.g., fifteen percent or more). On the retailer side of an incompatible purchase, retailers are forced to sell returned items as open box items which can cost the retailer money. Essentially, hardware/software incompatibilities currently cost both the consumer and the retailer time and money.
This situation results in a negative impact to consumers and to retailers, who often receive unhappy customer complaints about purchased hardware and/or software. Software returns can be particularly problematic due to network activation codes, as a new purchaser may have problems re-activating a previously activated software product. This may in turn create a cycle where all parties involved have lost resources through these activities, even though all involved parties have acted in good faith.